Yui stood frozen on the cold marble floor of the upper balcony, her eyes fixated on the scene below. She had just witnessed Lea storming out onto the terrace, her face contorted in fury. Hugo followed a few steps behind, his expression unreadable except for the intense flush that colored his face—anger, regret, desperation—it was all there, tangled into something volatile.
Then, in an instant that would forever be carved into Yui's memory, she heard it.
A gunshot.
No warning. No time to react.
The sharp crack echoed against the mansion walls, and everything slowed. Yui's breath caught in her throat. She rushed to the edge of the balcony, her heart hammering violently in her chest. Down below, Lea's body collapsed onto the stone floor, crimson blood pooling around her like a gruesome halo. She didn't move.
Screams erupted.
